Category Archives: Life as I know it.

As I pulled up to the library on my bike and started locking it to the rack, I had an epiphany (perhaps a slight overstatement). I realized that my bike would be there when I came back, but not because of the flimsy lock which I was attaching to it. No one would take my bike because

my bike does not look like it is worth stealing.

I wonder how often this is true of our faith? How often do we make faith in Jesus look undesirable?

Perhaps this is why Paul says to the Philippians,

14 Do everything without grumbling or arguing, 15 so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.”[c] Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky 16 as you hold firmly to the word of life…So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.

Good question.

Why me? Why should I blog?

According to the guidelines established by Tentblogger (my only source of instuction in blogging), a focused blogger should have passion, expertise, and unique value.

Let’s see how I measure up.

Passion – 1 for 1

I have passion in abundance! Alas, I cannot prove it here and now, but time will tell as I live my life and share it with you. If you do not yet know about my passion, you can read about him here.

Expertise- 1 for 2

Obviously, a 20-something-year-old does not have expertise in a whole lot. I am sometimes an expert at thinking I have expertise…but I am not proud enough to think that merits a point.

Unique Value – 1 for 3

Tentblogger provides a handy-dandy list of of questions to help future bloggers to determine uniqueness. I found out that I am pretty ordinary; almost extraordinarily so.

Since I am confessing my inability to focus, I might as well make an “honourable” plug: the Tentblogger has made this blog possible through his series which I have fondly nicknamed “Blogging for Dummies.” If you want to read the article I referred to in this article, click here. Tentblogger, I am not sure if you will ever read this, or if you will even appreciate a mention in a blog which violates every rule you have created, but I really am thankful for your resources. :)

Reasons I am not unique According to Blogging Standards

– I did not grow up in an area of the world which is renowned by any means. I am from a small place. It is even more difficult to say than it is for people to drive through, if they are not from here. And there are very few people who are actually from here. The entire province is populated by only one million people. This means that not much comes out of here. Just like there are not very many people, there is also not much to see. Not much for scenery unless you like looking at fields. The last claim to fame I can think of was a comedy called Corner Gas. If you have never heard of it (and my guess is that, if you are from anywhere else, you have not), you can search it on youtube. I should warn you though: while this humor is hilarious locally, I often wonder if it is understood anywhere else.

– While I do have a really “different” family, I do not think it is right for me to capitalize on them. Perhaps this is because it is not really “my” family. It is my mom’s family. I am single, which means I do not have my own family. And, for the time being, I am ok with that. Really. So please do not :

A) feel really sorry for me and my lack of marital bliss because I already have enough people in my life who have that role covered, thank you.

B) ask me to go on a date if I do not know you in real life, because that would be weird.

So long as these two things do not happen, I have a feeling that this blog and I will get along real well. :)

– My career path does seem like an absolute maze to everyone, including me. I believe that God calls different people to do different things in different ways. He called me to do missions when I was eight years old. Since then, I have done a bunch of school, dabbled in a couple of VERY short-term trips, and done a lot of questioning about the what/where/when/how of this calling. So basically, I am in the process of letting the Holy Spirit work it out, and it is frustrating! I am committed to doing anything, anytime, anywhere, at any cost for Him, which means I am often at odds with my flesh and my emotions.

-I have not yet survived something catastrophic or just simply bizarre, though I hope to do so in the future.

– Finally, I do not have a unique talent/skill/strength that I am showcasing. This blog is based on the hope that there are others before me and that there will be others after me who all have the same dream: to serve Jesus with everything we got. Perhaps you are one of these “others” I have just mentioned. I know we are really all part of the same family, so I am glad to meet you (in a sense).

If you are an “other” other than those whom I have already mentioned, don’t be a stranger! I am especially glad that you are here. I am committed to this being a safe place for anyone to ask questions. I cannot guarantee great answers. In fact, the only parts of this blog worth reading will be the parts which come directly from the Word of God. I will try my best to keep this wisdom in consideration.

My score, on the other hand, I may try to forget.

1 for 3

So, by official blogging standards, I fail. Miserably.

Thankfully, as a Christian, I am accustomed to engaging in activities which I do not deserve to be a part of. Like having a relationship with God. Like speaking up for him. So I will continue to take advantage of this grace in this blog.

Speaking of advantage: because the standard of questions in this blog has been set with “why me?”, I guess that here:

any question is a good question. *

*Some exclusions do apply: A&B, as outlined above, are not good questions. This is not a dating service, afterall.